Archive for the Category »Florida Puppy Training «

Everyone knows that dog is man’s best friend, and it is true that dogs confer a huge amount of benefits to man and his family. A dog can help us emotionally, reducing stress as we pet them, or being a friend when otherwise we might feel like we’re alone. They help us physically as well, asking us to take them out to play, causing us to stretch ourselves out of a still life, which also reduces stress and gives us access to the fresh outdoors that, without our dogs, we might ignore and stay inside on our televisions and computers instead.

What we need to stay conscious of is how well we take care of our dogs. While they help us, they also absolutely rely on us for food, shelter, and physical and emotional care. We are symbiotic. The quality of a dog’s life is determined almost entirely by what we, as their owners, decide to give them access to. This is why we at K9 Korral carry the very best in dog supplies Sarasota. We want our dogs (and your dogs!) to be happy and healthy all of the time. The first step in this process is ensuring that you are allowing your dog to eat premium, healthy dog food.

We Carry Food For Dogs with Allergy Sarasota

It is important to make sure that you are feeding your dog the highest quality foods. Many people do not realize that many of the big brands that are on grocery stores shelves are really the equivalent of fast food for dogs. These brands can contain fillers that dogs do not process easily or well, such as corn, wheat, or soy. At K9 Korral we do our research and make sure to carry the highest quality foods that contain ingredients that dogs are meant to eat. Some of these brands include Blue Buffalo, By Nature, Canidae, Eagle Pack, Newman’s Own Organics, Taste of the Wild, and more. These are holistic dog foods that only use healthy ingredients, and we feel that we can recommend them with the utmost confidence.

And while many of these foods are good for most dogs, sometimes a dog will turn up an allergy, as dogs are very much like humans. We all have small quirks of biology, and just as we can be allergic to particular ingredients, dogs can as well. Some common dog allergies include: beef, dairy, chicken, lamb, fish, corn, wheat, soy, and yeast. These are ingredients that are widely used in dog food, and we know that it can be difficult to find a safe food for a dog with particular allergies. However, we have made sure to stock our store with some of the best food for dogs with allergy Sarasota. Sometimes it does take a little experimentation to figure out what ingredient your dog is having a reaction to, but whatever the need, we at K9 Korral will work with you to help figure out what your dog should avoid and which brand of food is going to be the best fit for your best buddy.

We Have Great Dog Toys Sarasota as Well!

Other than diet, the most obvious and important aspect of your dog’s life is their exercise. Dogs have a lot of energy, many of them so much that we find it hard to keep up with them. One of the best ways to help a dog work through his energy is to get him a great toy. This can be something that he can fetch and chase after, such as a ball, a ball and rope, or some sort of Frisbee. Alternatively, you can get your dog something that he can chew and work on, such as a bone, a knotted bone, a knotted rope, or anything else that has some durability and/or digestibility. Luckily we carry some of everything, and only carry the very best dog toys Sarasota that we would want our own pets to have access to.

No matter what your need, we at K9 Korral are here to ensure that you have access to the best dog supplies Sarasota! Come in and check us out so your dog stays happy and healthy!

Few things are cuter than watching a puppy as it slowly figures out the world around it. They are soft and cuddly, and they can be very affectionate toward their owners. And the joy that they bring can bring with it an equal amount of satisfaction when that puppy grows into a well-behaved adult canine that still aims to please you and your family, although they do eventually stop being cute and clumsy.

However, some dogs can be a bit of a handful when you are trying to train them. Training is a complicated process, and like anything, it takes time. Most dog owners will tell you that it can be as much of a learning process for the trainer as it is for the dog involved. It can be a slow process, so patience is required, and you have to accept the fact that there will be setbacks along the way. Sometimes, no matter how loving and well-intentioned an owner might be, they simply may not have the time to properly train their dog. That is where professional dog training can be a real life saver.

What Are the Benefits of Personal Dog Training?

Many owners elect to send their dogs to be trained by professionals even when they dogs do not exhibit any behavioral problems. Personal dog training is an opportunity for a dog to learn skills beyond the basic commands like sit, stay, down, and others. Puppies can certainly be taken to trainers to learn these basic skills, but owners who want their dogs to learn agility skills or who aim to show their dogs in competitions often enlist the help of dog trainers to teach the animals the more advanced commands that those competitions require.

Where is the Best Dog Training in Sarasota?

K9 Korral is the perfect destination for your dog training needs, regardless of what they may be. We have an experienced staff that is more than capable of handling any and every dog, which is what makes us the best destination for dog training in Sarasota. Whether you have a new puppy that needs to learn basic commands and be housebroken or have an older dog that you want to learn more advanced commands, we can provide your dog with the care and training that he or she deserves and deliver excellent results to you.

We offer many different training courses that are designed to meet the needs of any dog, regardless of what level of training they have previously achieved. There are four levels of obedience classes that we can enroll your dog in, and if you want, there are more advanced classes that he or she can go through after completing obedience courses. We also feature private dog training sessions in the event that you are unable to attend our obedience courses with your pet. Just drop him or her off with us, and we will handle the rest.

Every pet owner has their own goals in regard to training a new puppy, and we understand that. We offer consultations for our clients so that they can understand what each of our courses is designed for and choose the one that most closely aligns with their goals for their pet. Regardless of the course you choose, we promise that the bond you form with your dog will be strong and long-lasting. Solid training helps a dog feel secure and confident, and it enables the owner to proudly take their pet anywhere and know that the two will have an enjoyable experience.

K9 Corral offers the bestprofessional dog training in Sarasota. We have many satisfied customers, and we want you to be the next one. We work hard to provide affordable dog training to anyone who wishes to enjoy the many benefits that a strong bond with a beloved pet can provide. We have training courses that will suit your pet regardless of their previous level of training, and we offer personalized training programs for the busy pet owners that do not have the time to attend our sessions. These are just a few of the many reasons why we are the best dog training agency in Sarasota. Come on in and see for yourself.

There is a good chance you have already named your puppy. If not, now is a great time because your puppy’s
name is very important in many ways. Your puppy’s name could even save his life one day. In this article i will
give you some tips to getting your puppy to learn his name.

What if your dog was chasing a ball out into the street? What if a car was coming towards him? Calling his name and him responding even in the middle of playing will keep him safe from any harm. It will be easier if you use it’s name every time you talk to him and with ever command (except NO and STAY). Don’t ever associate the dog’s name with something negative or they wont want to come again. Changing the puppy’s name could be bad. Even giving it a nickname could confuse him and that’s the last thing you want.

A couple tricks i used were pretty easy like always calling them nicely (even if I didn’t want to).I only scolded them when I caught them in the act. Its hard to get used to, but in the end it will pay off.

A great game you can play with your dog to teach his name is The Name Game. It is fun, easy, and great for kids to play with the puppy to. It is pretty basic with easy commands and is fun for the puppy. The rules are

· Take your dog to the park or anywhere convenient for you maybe your back yard and keep him on leash (it works a lot better if you have a longer leash maybe about 10 feet).
· Give him 4 to 7 feet to wonder away.
· When he’s not looking call his name with an excited voice and make sure he comes to you (if he doesn’t come pull him in with his leash).
· When he gets to you give him tons of love and affection
· Repeat this over and over again until your puppy is consistently coming to you when you call his name.

***Whenever you’re trying to get your puppy’s attention you have to be the most exciting thing in the world…more exciting then the birds, smells, other dogs, joggers…you get the picture…

Bringing your little puppy home for the very first time is a special day. It might be really exciting for you, but the weeks to follow could be challenging. They might be cute and cuddly but the late night potty trips or play time might give you some trouble. I will give you a couple tips on making those midnight trips a little less stressful.

Some of the preparations are before you put Fido to sleep. Puppy’s tend to sleep a lot and they don’t seem to care when it is. For the pup to sleep during the evening will make him want to get up and play in the middle of the night when he is rejuvenated. Try to avoid the evening sleep. Another thing is try to stay away from food or water before bed. Giving the pup any food or water before bedtime is a guaranteed rough night for you when there belly or bladder is full. Roughly 3 hours before bed is best.

Now comes that dreadful moment, the late night potty trip. This is where the puppy usually finds out he can wake you up by whining or making noises. When this time comes to let your little pup out to go potty remember its strictly business time. Avoid talking or playing. If you tend to play around and talking to the dog at night he will think he can get more attention by making noise at night. Just keep it to a “good boy” and back to bed. Be sure to not let him sit there and bark when the pup needs to go, take him out.

The majority of dog owners have experienced their animal begging at the dinner table. No matter how much you love your puppy, this is a behavior, which you just shouldn’t tolerate. Especially if you have guests over, then your dog should be calm and leave everyone be during their meal.

There’s a lot said about being the pack leader. This term describes making sure your dog is aware that you are the one who is in charge of your household. Many dogs male and female will attempt to show their dominance by taking your food right off your plate. This is a usual problem when you have guests over, they turn there back to talk to someone sitting next to them, and instantly they loose there main course faster than you can say “what just happened”.

The biggest issue is occasionally feeding your dog from the dinner table is a bad habit to start. Owners often justify this behavior saying, “it’s just once in a while”, or even “I rarely do this but”. These are all bad excuses because it leads to a negative learned behavior for your dog. As the owner you must lead by example if you expect your dog to behave all the time, if you expect consistency out of your animal.

Now if your dog is well trained in general and listens to commands such as lie down, stay, heel, etc., then you do have the option of just making sure your animal follows your commands, its best to ask them to lie down above all else, this helps reinforce dominance in your relationship, it reminds the dog you’re the pack leader. Then, whatever you do it will follow suit and listen as closely as possible. If you do however notice your dog start to get up from the laying down position, curb that immediately and remind them to stay lying down while your feeding them.

Ultimately, you have to remain diligent with your dog and cannot be inconsistent. Your dog learns and remembers things via repetition and consistency. Practice this at every family meal, do it often enough prior to having any company over. Once you establish your guidelines with your dog when you are eating at the dinner table, everyone will be happier for it. Dogs need rules boundaries and limitations to feel complete. This is how it is in the wild, or if you have a pack of dogs, the dominant animal is going to let the rest of the pack know when something they are doing is disruptive, or making them feel uncomfortable, so it might feel like your being cruel sometimes to your dog, but they absolutely need this to be happy and healthy.

Living with your owner as a puppy can be quite difficult in the early learning stages of their development. The first of many live lessons for your puppy is not to relieve itself inside the house. Then of course your puppy lacks the ability to explain to you in plain english that it needs to go out to do its business. Also, unless your puppy can walk on its hind legs and use both paws to open the door, you’re going to have to train them to let you know when it’s time to head outside.

Not all pet owners know how to see the sometimes subtle signs that it’s time to go out for a walk and let your dog do its business. Many puppies develop social skills quite early, thus being able to get your attention that it needs to go outside. Some however, aren’t as adept at telling people when they need to go out. Even if your dog falls into this category there’s no need to panic. There are some very easy steps you can take to train your puppy to let you know when the time is right to head outside and let them do their business.

The first question is what if my puppy already does in fact ask to go out and I absolutely don’t understand the signs? Dogs have their own way of communicating with one another. This language unfortunately we do not understand whatsoever, but your dog doesn’t realize it’s not coming in loud and clear when it expresses itself.
Now here’s a list of common clues that it might be time for a trip outside for the puppy. Pacing back and forth, circling around excessively, and whining consistently with no obviously reason what’s bothering them. Also, sniffing around when you have no other new animals in the house for which it might feel the need to do that otherwise. If you see the dog going behind furniture, or to a part of the house where you cannot keep an eye on them. Alternatively, standing by or scratching at the door in any way.

The best way however to train your dog to let you know when it wants to go outside is to hang some type of reasonably loud bell on the door knob where it has access to reaching it if nothing else. This way you can have your dog ring the bell to associate it with going outside. This way if you’re in another room even then you can hear the dog needs to head outside to relieve itself.

To ensure your dog lives a happy and healthy life, regular exercise is a must in the daily routine. You already know how critical it is yourself to exercise. Going out for a run around the block, possibly a swim or roller blading sure does leave you feeling motivated and energized. Clearly, explaining the benefits of exercise to your dog will leave both of you tilting your head in confusion. So the job falls on you as the owner to keep your dog in great physical condition. As always before starting any regiment or new diets you should consult your veterinarian.

Most pet owners main exercise provided for there dog is going to be going for walks. It’s a great idea to take your dog out for a 15-20 minute walk prior to the family going to bed for the night. This helps your pooch get to sleep when everyone else does and wake up refreshed. If your lucky enough to have a swimming pool, its a fun, easy way get your dogs heart beating and burn those calories. Also, if your dog is trained and calm around other dogs, dog parks are a great option for outdoor playing. Lots of breeds love playing Frisbee or some type of catch. Just remember, dogs were meant to be wild animals before domesticated, they could travel vast distances for food, so many dogs crave the exercise and will love you for letting them engage on a regular basis.

Another very important and often neglected thought is providing your dog quality time and one on one attention. Isolation, dejection and hostility are shared qualities of canines that have not received appropriate attention and socialize training. In fact, experts in the field have claimed that if a dog hasn’t been socialized in an affectionate, reliable setting by the time they reach sexual maturity, which is about 1- 1½ years old. Then they may never have intimate interactions with people or other animals. The plus side is delivering tender attention is the greatest thing about being a dog owner to begin with. Whether your taking your dog for a run in the park, or swimming at the beach, providing calm, affectionate contact is stress-free and fulfilling for the both of you.

For the most part you should treat your dog how you would want to be treated when it comes to exercise. Unless of course you’re not a very active person, then remember they both need and crave it. Offer a healthy diet, make sure they get loads of exercise, and make sure there’s always some quality time spent with your companion. Just make sure to have regular veterinary check-ups on top of everything else and your looking at a great long live for your puppy.

Submissive wetting or urination is unfortunately a normal way for pups to demonstrate submissive behavior. Even a puppy that is for the most part housetrained may leave dribbles and puddles of urine on the floor by your feet when they greet you.

When it comes to puppies, submissive urination is the ultimate way of showing their respect for you and the desire for a higher rank in the pack. It occurs frequently with young pups that have not yet learned and perfected very important social skills. Submissive urination in adult puppies is more than likely a sign of insecurity. Often pups that are not socialized or unfortunately in some cases abused pups will submissively urinate. Other puppies that engage in submissive urination may simply have not been shown or demonstrated that there are more acceptable ways to show respect. Such as raising a paw for a hand shake or giving a kiss with a simple lick.

Submissive urination may be present in overly sensitive or mistreated puppies because they feel the need to constantly apologize. The root cause of this state of mind is often caused by excessive or delayed punishment. This of course will frighten and confuse the puppy without having taught him how to make amends in a proper manner. The puppy resorts to the only way he knows how to show respect and fear, by submissive urination. When your puppy submissively urinates, it is best to just ignore him. If you try to reassure him, he will think you are praising him for urinating and will in turn urinate more frequently. If you raise your voice and yell at him, he will feel an even greater need to apologize by urinating. Both reassurance and scolding will only make submissive urination a much bigger issue.

Treatment of submissive urination must be directed towards building your puppy’s confidence and showing him better ways of demonstrating and showing respect. The quickest way to accomplish this is by teaching your puppy a few basic obedience exercises. A puppy that can earn praise by obeying a simple routine of “Come here, sit, shake hands,” will soon develop a crucial level of self esteem and confidence. Therefore a more confident puppy with high self esteem who can say, “Hello” by simply sitting and shaking hands does not feel the need or urge to urinate at his owner’s feet.

First, understand that your dog is not trying to get even with you for leaving him home alone. The destructive behaviors, going potty on the floor and neurotic behavior that accompany dog separation anxiety are linked to a panic response. Luckily, for you the owner, the panic response is a behavior that is successfully modified with corrective, positive reinforcement to help calm nerves and promote your dog’s confidence and wellbeing.

No one fully understands why there’s some dog that suffer anxieties more than others when some dogs don’t at all. However, it is known that dog separation anxiety sometimes occurs when a significant change in routine, structure or surroundings such as the absence of an important companion. This may also occur when moving into a new home, a new pet or person in the family, or perhaps a change in the normal feeding schedule.

Before we get into the process of what to do about dog separation anxiety, let’s spend a moment going over what NOT to do. First and foremost, don’t punish your dog. Punishment of any form is NOT an effective way to treat dog separation anxiety as well as any unwanted behaviors. A response such as this, on the part of the owner (you) only serves to reinforce the behavior you’re trying to do away with.

Providing another pet as a potential companion for your dog won’t exactly help either. Dog separation anxiety stems from your dog being separated from you and not so much from being alone. Being unable to play with another animal isn’t the same as just being plain old bored. There is a major difference between boredom and loneliness.

Incarcerating a dog with separation anxiety in a crate is also not the answer, nor a solution. A dog’s nature is to be free. A nervous dog locked in a crate is now left with a heightened panic response but now with a build up of paranoia and desperation on top of it. The added risk of your dog injuring himself in an attempt to escape from the crate is also heightened.

Obedience training alone will not address this psychological problem. Although, there is no question that obedience training is a satisfying and worthwhile experience for the both of you to enjoy. Dog separation anxiety is an uncorrected panic response and is unrelated to obedience as well as disobedience.

Positive reinforcement dog training is a friendly method of teaching your dog to perform behaviors using dog food, treats and other positive actions in the form of a reward. Rewarding appropriate dog behavior makes that behavior more likely to become a future re-occurrence. This is one of the most powerful tools you can use to reshape or change your dog’s actions. Using positive reinforcement dog training teaches your dog what behaviors you do and don’t desire in a humane manner. This training method will also help to create healthier and much stronger bond between you and your dog.

Training based on physical punishment involves some level of discomfort or even pain and is most definitely not recommended. This also may cause your dog to bite in order to defend himself. Punishment may also be associated with other stimuli, including people, present at the time and occurrence of the punishment. For example, a dog that is punished for getting too close to a small child may become fearful or even defensive around that child.

When getting started, timing is key with positive reinforcement dog training. Your dog must be rewarded immediately for responding appropriately to your command. Every member of your family should use the same command system and of course, never reinforce the wrong behavior. For example, if you command your dog to sit, he should be given a treat the moment his bottom touches the floor. If you wait to long before giving him the treat after he stands up again, the moment will be lost. He will then think he is getting rewarded for standing, not sitting.

Most dogs will gladly work for positive rewards such as a tasty dog treat, play time and toys. We suggest that you choose a treat that is relatively small, soft, and easily broken apart. Treats should be highly valued by your dog as well as easy consumption. It is difficult to train a dog when he spends valuable time chewing and swallowing his reward. You want your dog to quickly eat the treat and look to you for more. Try to experiment with several different types of treats and find out which ones will work best. There are some dogs out there that are not motivated by food. If this is the case, try training using praise or build motivation through the company of other dogs.